Palmer v. D.C.

[KeeFus]

Looks like the residents of D.C. just landed another victory.

"In light of Heller, McDonald, and their progeny, there is no longer any basis on which
this Court can conclude that the District of Columbia's total ban on the public carrying of readyto-
use handguns outside the home is constitutional under any level of scrutiny. Therefore, the
Court finds that the District of Columbia's complete ban on the carrying of handguns in public is
unconstitutional."

http://alangura.com/wp-content/uploa...CT_OPINION.pdf

[will_1400]

Working the body, moving the ball a few yards at a time, whichever metaphor you want to use, we're making progress bit by bit. We need to keep it up.

[Drang]

Not surprised that Alan Gura won another one.

The part that astonishes me is that DC now has Constitutional Carry -- including non-residents! -- until they can come up with something else.

[Stephen]

he Court grants Plaintiffs’ motion for summary judgment and enjoins Defendants from enforcing the home limitations of D.C. Code § 7-2502.02(a)(4) and enforcing D.C. Code § 22-4504(a) unless and until such time as the District of Columbia adopts a licensing mechanism consistent with constitutional standards enabling people to exercise their Second Amendment right to bear arms.

Possibly a dumb question, but does that make DC constitutional carry for the time being?

[Drang]

Yes.
..

[LorenzoS]

I wonder how this might be a step toward eliminating May (not) Issue in states like NJ and cities like NYC. If there exists a right to carry outside the home, there is no possible defense of NJ's scheme where there is technically a possibility to get a carry permit but in practice it simply does not exist for the majority.

[LHS]

It's theoretically Constitutional Carry up until DC gets a stay and appeal. They'll fight this tooth and nail, and they'll likely point to some of the circuit court rulings that 'may issue' is theoretically constitutional, and then they'll never issue a permit, a la Hawaii.

[Sensei]

Not surprised that Alan Gura won another one.

The part that astonishes me is that DC now has Constitutional Carry -- including non-residents! -- until they can come up with something else.

Yes.
..

I'm not a lawyer. However, my instincts are telling me NOT to test this theory. I'm betting that if you show a DC cop your new, unloaded VP9 in your trunk, you will be immediately arrested. You will also probably get booked and spend at least 1 night in jail. You will then spend untold thousands in legal fees pleading your case.

If it were truly safe to Constitutionally Carry in DC, I suspect that you would already see THOUSANDS of people flocking from conservative areas of VA and MD to rally and rejoice in Lafayette Square with their pistols - something that would make the Secret Service bust an aneurysm.

[Tamara]

Working the body, moving the ball a few yards at a time, whichever metaphor you want to use, we're making progress bit by bit. We need to keep it up.

Three yards and a cloud of dust.

[will_1400]

Three yards and a cloud of dust.

Beats missing a field goal for the other team to run back for a game-winning TD at the end of a game. (Something you'd only see in SEC football as the rest of the country is smart enough to not make a kicker try for a field goal at a much longer distance than ones he'd already consistently missed in a critical game-changing situation... )

Seriously, though, even incremental progress is still progress. We should relish the small victories as we do the big ones while not getting complacent.